A Sweet Interruption
by Miyavilurver
Summary: On the eve of their final exam, Shoichi has a hard time concentrating. Byakuran isn't making it any easier. 10051.


A short one-shot that takes place during their college years.

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**A Sweet Interruption**

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Out of the corner of his eye, Shouichi watched absently as Byakuran popped another marshmallow into his mouth. A flash of pink—his tongue—was visible through the gap of his mouth, but it was a teasing thing. Lips closed around the white fluffy treat and a quiet sound of deep enjoyment filled the air. Byakuran hummed pleasantly as he flipped a page of his book.

The white-haired man wasn't distracted like Shouichi was. His fellow classmate's gaze was intent on his textbook as he studied for their upcoming exam. Like Shouichi should be. But Shouichi couldn't concentrate right now. It seemed impossible.

Winter was cold in New York. Shouichi was used to weather like this, but the heater in the dorm wasn't working well right now, so Shouichi had to resort to bundling himself up as best as he could. He was still cold though, and it was distracting. He wished he was back in Japan under the comforting heat of his _kotatsu_, but that was merely wishful thinking.

Being cold was a miserable thing. Shouichi really wasn't in the right mind to study. The words in the pages before him seemed jumbled and foreign. Though reading English had never been a problem for him before, right now the letters seemed meaningless. A sigh escaped his lips. Shouichi pushed his glasses up his nose and readjusted the scarf around his neck again until it was covering his skin completely. His fingers felt like icicles, but he didn't like how gloves felt on his hands when he was taking down notes, so he had to make due with stuffing them inside the sleeves of his sweater when he wasn't writing.

"Is there something wrong, Shou-chan?"

Byakuran's question had been uttered in a quiet, polite voice, but Shouichi still jumped in surprise at the sound, not having expected the sudden breach of silence.

A faint embarrassed flush touched his cheeks. "Ah, no," he said as he glanced over to his white-haired classmate. "It's nothing, Byakuran-san. I'm just a bit cold," he explained sheepishly.

Byakuran chuckled slightly in response. "It is a bit chilly, isn't it?"

Byakuran wasn't covered up like Shouichi was. He was merely wearing an open sweater over his t-shirt in a manner that seemed more like a fashion statement than as a means to protect himself from the cold. As usual, the other was dressed in soft, pastel colors that made his complexion look paler than it actually was.

In fact, the purple tattoo under Byakuran's left eye was the only source of color that stood out on the other. His eyes were equally as mesmerizing, of course, but Shouichi didn't often get the chance to stare into them. He felt too shy to hold the other's gaze for too long. His stomach often knotted anxiously when he did.

Like now. Shouichi didn't notice how long he'd been staring at the other, but Byakuran was staring back at him with half-lidded eyes and a slight amused smile curving on his lips.

Shouichi's stomach somersaulted and his cheeks reddened. He tried to remember what they were talking about.

"U-um, yeah. T-too bad the heater isn't working, huh?" he stuttered, and looked away promptly as the heat began to spread across his cheeks more prominently.

Byakuran chuckled. Shouichi heard the other shift around for a second, and then the thudding sound of a textbook closing. Shouichi peered at the other out of the corner of his eye again and found his classmate staring at him with a contemplative expression. As usual, Shouichi couldn't tell what was on the other's mind.

"How about I make us some hot chocolate? That's should warm us up, right?" Byakuran suggested after a moment.

"Huh?" Shouichi blinked and turned around to fully face the other. "That's not necessary," he said, trying to intercede, but Byakuran was already sliding out of bed, leaving his book behind amongst the forming creases of Shouichi's bed sheets, right next to a nearly empty bag of mini-marshmallows.

"I won't take long," the white-haired man assured him, laughter in his tone. His eyes were kind. Shouichi's gaze felt drawn by those piercing purple orbs, but he forced himself not to stare and looked down at the floor instead.

Socked feet made little sound as they walked across the blue rug covering the floor. Shouichi found himself holding his breath and stayed like that until the door of his dorm room closed behind the other. The redhead slumped once Byakuran was gone. He tugged the sleeves of his sweater over his hands and waited.

Shouichi tried to get back to studying. He flipped page after page of his book, trying to memorize the content, but there was a new distraction keeping him from focusing. The room felt empty now that the other was gone. Shouichi found it harder to concentrate without the faint background noises of Byakuran flipping pages, humming. His mind kept trying to recreate the sound of that quiet laugh, his low murmuring voice. The bag of marshmallows remained quiet and undisturbed on his bed.

It felt like too much time passed before the other came back.

Byakuran nudged the door open with his foot. Two warm mugs of the promised drink were on his hands. He offered one of them to Shouichi.

"Thanks," the redhead murmured in both a grateful and polite voice as he wrapped his cold fingers around the warm cup. He blew gently on the steaming liquid for a couple of seconds and then dared to brave a quick sip. Much to his surprise, his tongue remained unburned.

Shouichi's smile widened genially. "It's good," he said in an awed voice, enjoying the sweet taste and the way the drink spread warmly inside his chest. He shivered pleasantly and took another sip. A marshmallow bobbed across the rippling surface.

"Byakuran-san really likes marshmallows, huh?" Shouichi laughed quietly, smiling as he stared down at his cup. The marshmallow floating in his cup was bigger than the ones Byakuran had been snacking on a few moments earlier. The heated liquid was slowly beginning to melt the treat into the drink.

"Don't you?" Byakuran asked in surprise as he moved to lean on Shouichi's desk, pressing his hip against the wooden surface. His shirt was riding up slightly, so Shouichi caught a brief glimpse of pale skin before diverting his eyes back to his cup. Byakuran was already quite tall. The white-haired man towered over him when they were positioned like this.

"They're tasty, I guess. I don't eat them often," Shouichi explained before taking another brief sip.

"No?" Byakuran uttered softly, quiet enough that, after a while, Shouichi almost wondered if the other had said anything at all.

The two of them made little talk as they worked on emptying their cups. Shouichi thought the drink was delicious—perfect, really; he didn't think he'd ever had a more satisfying hot chocolate in his life—but he found himself getting distracted again. It was hard not to observe Byakuran from his peripheral vision as the man gulped down his drink. Shouichi felt entranced by the other man's exposed throat, the way his Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed.

"Shou-chan, your drink is gonna get cold," the white-haired man reprimanded him upon noticing, his eyes twinkling. The man offered him an indulging smile before licking the marshmallow goo off his lips with a quick swipe of his tongue.

Shouichi's eyes widened behind his glasses and he quickly glanced back down at his drink. His fingers tightened over the warm mug, and he focused on the heat spreading across his palms instead of the one rising up to his ears. He made quick work of his drink and swallowed it down in three long gulps. The rising heat fogged up his glasses slightly, but they cleared up within seconds.

When he was done, Shouichi let the cup rest on his chair in the space between his thighs. The redhead felt the warmth in his chest spread across his body from the tips of his fingers, to the tips of his toes. The hot chocolate had really done the trick. He no longer felt freezing cold. In fact, Shouichi felt the need to loosen his scarf. He tugged the fabric off his neck and let it slide down to the ground absently. When he glanced back up to his classmate, he noticed Byakuran staring at his cup.

"You didn't eat it, I see," the white-haired man commented in a mild tone as a way of explanation.

Shouichi blinked, stared down at the lonely marshmallow sitting on his empty cup, and then shrugged apologetically. "It's a little hard to swallow one that big."

"Ah." Byakuran's eyes widened in understanding and he nodded. "Sorry, I forgot the spoons," he said.

"It's alright." Shouichi shook his head, smiling. Then, he stopped. His eyes widened as he noticed Byakuran leaning over. His hand closed in on the space near Shouichi's thighs until his long, slim fingers wrapped around the cool handle of Shouichi's mug.

Byakuran tilted the cup until the soft fluffy treat was sliding across the porcelain cup and onto his finger. The few remains of the hot chocolate dripped onto his fingers, but Byakuran paid no mind as he grabbed the sticky treat between thumb and forefinger.

Without saying a word, Byakuran looked at him and Shouichi met his gaze feeling suddenly breathless. He blinked slowly, not really aware of his body's movements, and then Byakuran was pushing the heated marshmallow into the redhead's mouth. Shouichi's face flushed. The treat began melting as soon as it met the flesh of his lips.

"Don't swallow yet, okay, Shou-chan?" Byakuran murmured quietly, his gaze soft but piercing. There was a warningly, almost predatory edge to his smile that made Shouichi's throat dry. His mouth, on the other hand, was full and all too wet, slick with saliva and the sweet, viscous remains of the melting treat that Byakuran had pushed in.

It was hard to breathe at that moment.

Shouichi wondered then if Byakuran had any idea what he was doing to him. He must, he thought a moment later as he shuddered. Byakuran's fingers were tracing the contours of his mouth. They slid down the bare skin of his neck slowly, his warm fingers dragging over the tense tendon. Shouichi shut his eyes and concentrated on the task of not swallowing. It was uncomfortable, and his tongue kept nudging the soft treat in his mouth, trying to break it down to a more manageable size.

"Isn't it sweet?" Byakuran murmured into his ear then, and Shouichi jolted as he felt a warm heat press against his skin. Byakuran's mouth touched his ear and slid across his cheek. He pressed a slight kiss at the corner of his lips, and then lapped his tongue across them, nudging them open.

Shouichi's eyes were wide and open and his face was entirely flushed. The heat spread across his cheeks hotly. His chest had grown considerably warm as well due to the hot chocolate, but now it ached; hurt, really. Shouichi didn't think it was good for his heart to beat so fast, so hard inside his ribcage. Yet, amongst all the overwhelming warmth, Shouichi felt frozen. His limbs were locked into place and he felt unable to move under Byakuran's piercing gaze, his touch. When the white-haired man lapped across his lips again, Shouichi felt his lips part, and Byakuran's tongue sneak past them.

Shouichi's mouth felt full. Byakuran's tongue teased the sides of his mouth and slid over Shouichi's own tongue, but they were grazing touches. The older man was doing his best to suck back the treat melting in Shouichi's mouth, humming quietly as he did so.

The soft, gooey marshmallow was sweet, but Byakuran was sweeter. Shouichi felt his eyes slowly fall shut as he lost himself into the sensations of the kiss. Winter in New York was cold, and it felt all the worse with the heater broken and the lack of a _kotatsu_, but Byakuran was warm, and Shouichi had never felt more alright—complete, perfect, warm—in his life than at that moment.

When Byakuran pulled back, Shouichi felt lost. His eyes felt wet, and his lips were damp and sticky. The lower part of his body was aching, and his heart fluttered in anticipation as he saw Byakuran's gaze slowly drag down, examining him carefully like a prize, like something particularly delicious.

Then, the white-haired man straightened up and with a thin, mocking smile, he bid him good night.

"Mmm, thanks for the treat, Shou-chan. I'll see you tomorrow in class. Don't stay up too late studying, alright?"

Breathless and confused, Shouichi watched Byakuran pick up his book and turn to leave wordlessly. His heart clenched painfully inside his chest, and the forming bulge under his jeans twitched in protest. The moment the door fell shut behind Byakuran, Shouichi's hand absently trailed up to touch his lips.

Needless to say, the redhead had a hard time concentrating on studying that night.


End file.
